1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for transporting delicate or expensive items on a vehicle. More specifically, the invention is directed to a transport cage and enclosed case combination to carry items such as a hunting rifle on an all terrain vehicle (“ATV”).
2. Description of the Related Art
All terrain vehicles (“ATVs”) are frequently used on rough terrain and off-road by outdoors men and women such as deer hunters, outdoor enthusiasts, professional explorers (e.g, field geologists and gemstone hunters), national park employees, farmers, and cattle herders. ATV vehicles are often used to carry expensive items such as cameras, hunting rifles and/or parts thereof, hunting bows and arrows, binoculars, and professional equipment used by e.g. field geologists. Other items carried outdoors on ATVs include drugs and medicines such as anti-snake venom for use by a medical professional or wild-life vet; a park warden may carry animal knock-out darts and knock out drug refills on their ATV. Thus, expensive and/or delicate items are often carried on ATVs both for enjoyment and professional use.
Hunting rifles, bows, binoculars (and other optical devices such as sighting telescopes), and cameras are easily damaged by sudden sharp movements and for this reason are often regarded as knock-sensitive items. Gemstones such as emerald are very sensitive to knocks; likewise for alexandrite. Some medicines and explosives are also sensitive to knocks. Thus, there is a need for an apparatus or device to carry knock-sensitive items on an ATV.
ATVs typically have at least one external rack, e.g., a front and rear external racks for attaching items such as a killed animal, e.g. a fresh deer carcass, and hunting equipment such as a hunter's tree stand. Knock sensitive items that need to be carried on the racks have to compete with, for example, the hunter's tree stand. Knock sensitive items may be attached to an ATV rack. When the ATV is driven over rough ground knocks and bumps are inevitably transmitted to the knock-sensitive items carried on the ATV's racks. Specifically, there is a need for a transport apparatus or device that protects knock-sensitive items such as guns, cameras, and medicines attached to ATV racks.
In some states the law requires gun owners, including hunters, to transport firearms in a case. This law sometimes raises serious practical issues for hunters who e.g. attache a tree stand and a fresh kill such as a deer carcass respectively to the front and rear ATV racks. If the ATV racks are otherwise stacked with equipment and/or a fresh kill it is sometimes very hard for the hunter to put their hunting rifle in a case and attach the case to one of the heavily occupied ATV racks. Some hunters are tempted to carry their rifle on their shoulder perhaps because a tree stand and a dead deer are respectively attached to the ATV's front and rear racks. Driving an ATV in rough terrain with a high power rifle on the driver's shoulder is clearly unsafe and possibly illegal. Thus, there is a need for a device that enables a hunter to carry a gun in a case attached to an ATV rack that does not substantially compromise the carrying capacity of the ATV rack, i.e. the ATV rack should still be able to carry other items such as a deer or a hunter's tree stand.
Several efforts have been made to address these problems. U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,719 issued Nov. 14, 2000 to L. J. Robert describes a vehicle mountable gun and equipment case for the safe transportation of guns and equipment. The '719 case can be attached to an ATV's rack. Once attached to the ATV's rack the '719 device takes up space on the rack and thereby diminishes the racks capacity to carry other items.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,050,867 issued Sep. 24, 1991 to Rand et al., describes a portable cage-like protective apparatus for surrounding athletic field equipment such as pad assemblies for high jump and pole vault landing pits. The '867 apparatus protects against mischievous damage to pad assemblies, making it unnecessary to daily disassemble and move the pad assemblies or other athletic field equipment. The '867 patent does not teach or suggest a cage-like apparatus adapted to deal with the particular problems associated with attaching items to ATV racks.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,425,508 issued Jul. 30, 2002 to Cole et al. describes a sports equipment rack for a vehicle. Whatever the merits of the '508 patent there is no teaching or suggestion of a device to protect knock sensitive items carried on an ATV's racks. In addition, the '508 patent does not teach or suggest a means for safely carrying knock sensitive items which does not substantially diminish the load carrying capacity of a vehicle's rack.
Other patents showing portable cage-like protective devices, but which do not suggest or teach the subject matter of the present claimed invention, include U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,698,360, 3,731,657, 5,010,848, 5,335,468, 5,808,866, and 5,960,744.
Foreign patents showing portable cage-like protective devices, but which do not suggest or teach the subject matter of the present claimed invention, include DE 19535921.
None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the instant invention as claimed. Thus, a portable cage with enclosed case solving the aforementioned problems is desired.